Abstract
Micro-thermoelectric generator (TEG) possesses a great potential for powering wireless Internet of Things (IoT) sensing systems due to its capability of harvesting thermal energy into usable electricity. Herein, this work reviews the progress in recent studies on the micro-TEG, including material synthesis, device fabrication, and application demonstration. Thermoelectric materials are synthesized by the electrochemical deposition method. Three kinds of high-performance thermoelectric materials, including thick bulk-like thermoelectric material, Pt nanoparticles embedded in a thermoelectric material, and Ni-doped thermoelectric material, are presented. Besides the material synthesis, novel fabrication methods for micro-TEG can also help increase its output power and power density significantly. Two fabrication processes, micro/nano fabrication technology and assembly technology, are investigated to produce high-performance micro-TEG. Moreover, the fabircated micro-TEG as a power source for portable and wearable electronic devices has been demonstrated successfully.
Highlights
The considerable growth of research studies in energy-harvesting technologies, such as solar energy harvesting [1], RF power harvesting [2], thermoelectricgenerator-based electrolyte [3], thermoelectric-generator-based solid thermoelectric materials [4], associated with the Internet of Things (IoT) leads to more demands in the development of the high performance of a micro-thermoelectric generator (TEG)
The electrodeposition method is capable of modifying the morphology, composition, and crystal structure of the synthesized film, which would result in the high performance of the deposited materials
We review the recent progress in the micro-TEG, including material synthesis, device fabrication, and application demonstration
Summary
The considerable growth of research studies in energy-harvesting technologies, such as solar energy harvesting [1], RF power harvesting [2], thermoelectricgenerator-based electrolyte [3], thermoelectric-generator-based solid thermoelectric materials [4], associated with the Internet of Things (IoT) leads to more demands in the development of the high performance of a micro-thermoelectric generator (TEG). Thermoelectric-materials-based BiTe are widely investigated because of their high performance for applications at near room temperature. The electrodeposition method is capable of modifying the morphology, composition, and crystal structure of the synthesized film, which would result in the high performance of the deposited materials. Concerning enhancing the integration density, hundreds of thermoelectric elements could be produced on a small footprint by utilizing micro/nano fabrication technologies; some issues still remain. The height of the thermoelectric element is limited by micro/ nano fabrication technology. It makes micro-TEG low performance and against the practical applications. We review the recent progress in the micro-TEG, including material synthesis, device fabrication, and application demonstration. The fabricated microTEG as a power source for a calculator and a twist watch has been investigated
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